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v(No Model.)

A. H. BLISS. AMALGAMATOR.

`10.279.319 Patented June 12,1883.

l'v i v y f ,UNITED STATES PATENT r .ABEL IIBLIss, or -cHieAeo,iLLINois, Assis-Non or oNnHiiLr rro sYLvffn l Nest. rnirr, or siii/In Pinion.

I' AMALGAMAToR.

SPECIFICATION forming, part of Letters rafncNO. 279,319, dated `June 12, yieee.

Y Application filed March l, 1883. (No model.) W

To @ZZ L11/1,0m it may concern/.-

- Be it known that I, ABEL H. BLISS, a citizen of the United States, resi ing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois,

have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Amalgamators for Amalgamat` ing Vand Separating Ores; and I hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description ofthe same.

1o My invention relates' to improvements in apparatus for the above purpose, comprising a lvessel for mercury having a vertical 'rotary hollow shaft extending from the bottom of the lvessel or from near the bottom centrally upward to any desired height, and through which shaft the metal-bearing oreis fed into the mercury through openings near the base of the shaft, and caused to be distributed through the mercury at and about the plane 4of intro 2o duction, whereby those parts which have a specific gravity less than that of mercury are caused to rise through the latter, amalgamating therewith, if they are suceptible of amalgamation, or, if they are not, passing to the surface, where they are washed away, while the gold and other metals which have a greater specific gravity than mercury either become amalgated therewith or else sink to the bottom. In such devices it is usual to provide 3o perforated diaphragms at different planes below the surface of the mercury, through which diaphragms the ore is obliged to pass 011 its way to the surface. Some or all of these diaphragms are required to be stationary withy 3 5 in the vessel, and for this purpose it is necessary that they be in some suitable and convenient manner connected to the sides thereof. There these diaphragms rest upon collars on the shaft without being secured to the wall of the 4o vessel :the friction with the collar, however Iloosely the diaphragms may fit the shaft, tends to produce a rotary movement on the part of the diaphragms. Some means to prevent this rotary motion is therefore essential; but itis 4 5 obvious that if means for securing the diaphragms to the wall are so constructed as not only to obstruct their rot-ary motion, but also to support them, the collars upon the shaft may be wholly dispensed with. To accom- 5o plish this is the object of my invention.

My invention" consists in providing the in- 11er wall ofthe vessel. with dovetailed vertical recesses having short lateral branch Vrecesses extending from them at different points, and providing the diaphragms with projecting peripheral tongues at such distances from each other as to coincide with the vertical dovetailed recesses, whereby they may be set within the latter when the diaphragm is placed within the vessel, brought down until a partic- 6o ular series of lateral recesses is reached, and then turned into the latter, and secured in place by dovetailed bars corresponding in size to the dovetailed recesses and slid down into the same. Y Referring to the drawings, Figure lis a central vertical section of an apparatus of the character above designated, provided with my improvements; Fig. 2, a horizontal section of the same on the line a" a", of Fig. l; and Fig. 7o 3, an enlarged det-ail view. v

A is the mercury-vessel, and B- the rotary hollow shaft turning in a seat, lv, at the bottom ofthe vessel, andprovided at its top with a hopper, u, and near its lower end with open'- 75 ings, t, for the discharge of the triturated ore. The shaft maybe stayed by a suitable bean ing, s, and revolved through the medium of a i belt upon the pulley I1'.

C is the disseminating-plate, preferably cir- 8o cular, which is without perforations, and which extends only part way across the interior, leaving an annular space between" its periphery and the wall of the vessel. I prefer to have it rigidly secured to the shaftas, 8 5 for example, by a collar and set-screw, q, upon the shaft-both above and below the plate, whereby the shaft and plate shall be revolved together.

A particular description of my device for 9o securing and supporting the stationary perforated diaphragms is as follows: rlhe upper part of the vessel is shown flaring, while below this ila-ring part it is cylindrical. It is quite as often made cylindrical throughout its 95 entire height, however. On the inside of the cylindrical part, extending from the top to bottom thereof', I form two or more vertical dovetailed recesses, p, having short lateral branches o (not dovetailed) at different points inv their Ioo length. The perforated diaphragms D are provided with the tongues n at their peripheries, corresponding in location with the dovetailed recesses p, and adapted to enter the latter when the diaphragm is set Within the vessel. I prefer to form these tongues in the nature of extensions of radial ribs fn/ upon either the upper or under surface of the diaphragm. To place any diaphragm in position it is inserted within the vessel with the tongues n coniciding with the dovetailed recesses, and then lowered therein until the tongues register Vwith the series of lateral recesses, by which it is desired to have the diaphragm secured, when the diaphragm is given a turn, carrying the tongues n into the lateral recesses, whereby the diaphragm is supported. To hold the tongues firmly in place within these recesses a dovetailed rod, m, fitting the dovetailed recesses, is then forced down into each of the latter, as represented in Fig. 2. The lateral recesses may be formed at very short intervals along the'dovetailed recesses, thus permitting the diaphragmsl) to be adjusted at any desired height within the vessel. It will be seen that this mode of adjustment is both more convenient and more effective than that of supporting and .adjusting the diaphragms by means of sliding collars upon the shaft provided with set-screws.

Vhat I clai'mas new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

The vessel A, having vertical interior dovetailed recesses, p, provided with lateral branch recesses, o, in combination with diaphragms D, having tongues n upon their peripheries, and with dovetailed rods m, fitting the recesses 1p, substantially as described. 

